Penn State hoped to avoid playing on the first day of the Big Ten tournament, but it couldn’t. The silver lining for Micah Shrewsberry’s Nittany Lions is that they have what looks like a winnable game in the first round.
The last time Penn State played Minnesota, the Lions had their most lopsided win of the Big Ten season, handling the Gophers, 67-46. Now, the 11th-seeded Nittany Lions will look for a similar performance against the 14th-seeded Gophers Wednesday night at 8:30 in Indianapolis.
Minnesota finished the regular-season in last place in the Big Ten, going 4-17 in conference play, albeit with one of those wins coming against Penn State Feb. 12.
The matchup is set 👀 Postseason play begins Wednesday night in Indy.
🔗: https://t.co/R9Rm1AOqNq#WeAre pic.twitter.com/r9f1Gb08wk
— Penn State Men’s Basketball (@PennStateMBB) March 7, 2022
The Nittany Lions have had limited success in past Big Ten tournaments. Their last real run happened in 2018, when Penn State made it to the semifinals before falling to Purdue. Last season, Penn State beat Nebraska before falling by one-point to Wisconsin in the next round.
The Big Ten tournament will run from March 9-13.
